Faulconbridge, New South Wales

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Faulconbridge (33°41′S 150°32′E) is a village located in the Blue Mountains 77 km west of Sydney, New South Wales and is 450 metres above sea level.

The area around Faulconbridge was first explored by Blaxland, Wentworth and Lawson in May 1813 while they were camped at Springwood and looking for the ridge which would take them over the mountains. It was settled in the 1870s after the railway line had opened up the whole of the mountains.

One of the earliest residents was the "Father of Federation", Sir Henry Parkes who moved to the area in 1877 and purchased 600 acres (2.4 km²). It is said that the original railway platform at Faulconbridge was specifically built to serve his residence which was known as Faulconbridge House. The town was named after Parkes' home. Faulconbridge was the maiden name of Sir Henry Parkes' mother. Parkes is buried in Faulconbridge. The railing surrounding his grave bears a plaque which describes his role in Australian history:

"Sir Henry Parkes, Father of Australian Federation, five times Prime Minister of New South Wales, arrived in Australia July 25, 1839, worked as station-hand, Customs Officer, bone and ivory turner. In 1850 became proprietor of Empire Newspaper. Member of New South Wales Parliament from 1854-1894, Sir Henry Parkes is especially remembered for his efforts to develop New South Wales Education and Railways and his work for Federation earned him his title Father of Federation."

On Sir Henry's Parade (which runs between Springwood and Faulconbridge on the southern side of both the railway line and the highway) is Jackson Park, which is home to the Prime Ministers' Corridor of Oaks. Joseph Jackson, a NSW Member of Parliament, gave the park to the local council in 1933 with the explicit intention of having every Australian Prime Minister, or a nearest surviving relative, plant an oak tree. Jackson was a huge admirer of Henry Parkes and believed that his Corridor of Oaks was a suitable monument to the man most responsible for the federation of Australian states.

Faulconbridge is well known for having been the home of artist Norman Lindsay. Some streets have been given names from some of the characters out of Lindsay's famous children's book The Magic Pudding. These include; "Bill Barnicle Ave", "Wombat Way" and more.

A number of aboriginal carvings are also to be found on the rock shelves in the area.

For logophiles it may be worth observing that Faulconbridge uses half of the alphabet, including all five vowels, and does not use any individual letter twice.

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